


Cabin Pressure

by AllyTheBrave



Category: Voltron - Fandom, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bisexual Lance, Cuddling, Eventual Smut, Fluff and Angst, Freckled Keith (Voltron), Gay Keith, Getting Together, Homesickness, I Don't Even Know, Kissing, M/M, Mutual Pining, Orphan Keith (Voltron), Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Slow Burn, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-18
Updated: 2017-08-26
Packaged: 2018-12-16 20:50:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11836812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AllyTheBrave/pseuds/AllyTheBrave
Summary: Lance never liked to think he was destined for greatness.





	1. Bonding Gone Wrong.

Lance never liked to think he was destined for greatness.

It seemed stupid to him that anything he ever did would matter. He was just an average teenager with very few accomplishments under his belt. He was just going through the checklist of achievements he need to complete to have a “normal” life by the age of 21. He was the youngest member of his very large family, so as long as he did these things his parents would be proud of him. Anything else big his other siblings had already done for him. They were all doctors, scientists and etc, with large families to keep his parents happy.

But still he figured he’d graduate from the Garrison, become a pilot, end up settling down with a someone and then have a family. You know, normal life. Lance thought his biggest break ever would be getting moved up to be a fighter class pilot. He’d be following in his father’s footsteps, it was his biggest dream. Lance remembered that day better than any of the other memories from earth. The day he found out he was fighter pilot, his father had smiled at him and pulled him into a tight hug. “I’m proud of you, son” He said to him, before turning to the rest of the family while saying. “My Son, the fighter pilot” Before they all hugged, laughing and congratulating him.

This was before he learnt that aliens were real. Before he met the blue lion and was rocketed into space without a chance to say goodbye to them.

Suddenly Lance felt very sick and he hugged his knees close to his chest. His family probably think he is dead, they’ve been told he died in some freak accident while training. They’d of had a funeral for him by now.

Lance blinked back the tears and gulped in deep breaths, hyperventilating. He stared at the floor, trying to relax. His panicked breath made the tears flow harder and heavier.

He missed his home more than ever. He missed his mama’s cooking, sunsets, garlic knots, and the beach, especially the ocean. You could see it from his childhood bedroom, oh god did he miss home. Everyday he’d be awoken to the smell of fresh bread. He’d run out of his space themed room, it was still space themed to this day, even if he had grown out of it slightly, he refused to take down the glow in the dark constellations he’d taken so long to put up. Will they have changed his room by now?

After breakfast, he run down to the beach instantly with his dog, a border collie called Bailey. He was his loyal companion, he’d never left his side from the moment he bought him home. Whenever he’d go to school, Bailey would wait for the door for him to come back. His heart skipped a beat at the idea of him waiting, still loyal, by the door. How long would he be waiting for?  

There was never a day at home when he didn’t go to the beach, even in the rain you’d catch Lance running down it, finding interesting looking shells and playing fetch. He missed the feeling of sand in Bailey’s fur and on his feet, the sun beating down on his body while his mama shouted at him to put sunscreen, the smell and the taste of the sea as he splashed his siblings, but the only salt he could taste now was from his tears.

He wanted nothing more than to run back to earth, just to see his family. It had been too long. So long he lost count of the days he’d been in space. Would he even make it back to earth?

What if his family are dead by the time he’s back, he never got a chance to tell them how much he appreciated, and loved them before he ran off into space. The chance he’d never see his family again brought a fresh wave of tears. His parents will never see the man he is becoming. Would they be proud of him for being a paladin of Voltron? Of course, surely. He is saving the universe.

Even though space is huge, never-ending, he felt claustrophobic and small, meeting the Galra made him feel even tiny. The idea that there are aliens even bigger than that makes him feel microscopic. Earth made him feel safe, and at home.

He used to stand in the shower with his clothes on with his eyes shut and imagine that he was in the rain, after he got caught once he stopped. He ran his hands through his hair and tugged at it slightly while he cried. He often cried when he was sure he was alone, or at least hidden from the others. He didn’t want them to know that he was hurting, panicking. He wanted nothing more to be alone with his thoughts of home and the hum of the engine of the castle.

He pulled at his hair while rocked back & forth, humming the lullaby his mother would sing to him. He was so focused on the song that he didn’t even hear the footsteps approaching.

“Lance?”  

Lance stopped humming, and looked up quickly at the voice he recognised to be Keith’s.

The boy loomed over him, his arms crossed and a worried expression painted across his face. Keith has never been good at poker face. “Are you crying?” He asked when he got no reply, as he knelt next to him. Lance studied Keith’s face for a moment.

Fuck, Space had been good for Keith. His fringe was almost covering his eyes again, he’d need to cut it again soon but He always cuts it too short because he never lets anyone help him. He’d tied most of his mullet back into a ponytail. Lance didn’t know why but it made his stomach flip whenever Keith did it, or that’s what he told himself anyways. He knew exactly why he felt his face flushing more than it already was.

When Keith hair wasn’t in his face, it gave Lance a proper chance to look at his wonderfully freckled face. Keith was covered in freckles, across his face, all down his arms. Lance sometimes wondered if he had freckles on his toned sto-. NO.

He shook himself mentally out the trace and looked away from Keith, wiping his tears in the process. Out of all the people of found him, Keith was the last person. He wouldn’t understand, nothing was tying him down to earth, no one probably even noticed he was gone!

“Come on Lance, you can talk to me” Keith mumbled, as he touched Lance’s back gently, rubbing it, this made Lance feel like an asshole for even thinking his last thoughts.

As much as Keith was his meant to be his rival, as soon as they got to space he quickly got over his obsession with beating Keith at everything and started seeing Keith less as a threat and more a friend.

 Now whenever Keith popped into Lance’s head it was only thoughts that made him happy, like the way he laughed, the way he smirked when he finally got something he’d be trying to work out all day right, etc. In the beginning these thoughts didn’t get Lance hot under the collar, but slowly and surely the closer he got to Keith, the more non-PC these thoughts got.

Lance often found himself waking up in the middle of night hot and bothered because of fucking _keith._ He thought that he was just sexually frustrated, Keith was definitely the most attractive out of the other paladins in Lance’s eyes.

 Ok, Lance could see the appeal of Shiro, and understood why Alien women get flustered around him, but for Lance he was just too old. 7 years wasn’t an age gap he was comfortable with. Hunk is Lance’s best friend, and has been for many years he would have gone there by now If he wanted too and Pidge is…. Pidge. Whereas Keith wasn’t too old, his best friend nor Pidge so of course he’d be in his dirty thoughts, but then thoughts of Keith started to seep into his normal thoughts, like the colour of his eyes how they looked like galaxies and when they got that look of determination that he gets, the twinkle like the stars. The freckles that are dotted across Keith’s body do not help either. Freckles have always been a weakness of Lance’s. Even when he was a young boy, they’d make him go weak in the knees and flustered. He’d fallen for enough girls with big eyes, curly hair and freckles that he knew that they were a weakness.

When Lance first latched eyes on Keith at the Garrison, his stomach had done a flip, he remembered it. Everyone had been talking about this Keith kid, acting like he was the best thing since sliced bread. Lance had hated Keith from first sight.

That _fucker_ had freckles, something that Lance craved so much, and considering the amount of time lance spent in the sun he didn’t understand why he didn’t have them. He didn’t even burn anymore, just got even more tanned, ugh.

Now Lance thought about these feelings he’d had for Keith, how he did everything to one up him, to get him to notice him, to _impress_ Keith. He realised that maybe it wasn’t hatred that he’d felt for Keith, which would also explain the weird mix of guilt and sadness that he’d felt when Keith had flunked out of the Garrison, even if it had meant he’d make his father proud. Either way now he had to focus on the mission at hand, not on whatever the hell he felt about Keith or missing home, but yet here he was, homesick.

Lance looked back at Keith again, his eyes were welling with tears at the idea of talking about his family to Keith. “got rejected by one of those hot girls today, hit harder than I thought it would” Keith was tense with worried as he studied Lance’s face, still rubbing Lance’s back as he sat down more comfortably than he had been doing. Lance sent a silent prayer hoping that Keith believed him.

“I’m not leaving, Lance until you actually tell me what’s wrong" 

Lance sighed, as the tears continue to pour heavier and heavier down his face as he rambled out his feelings to Keith. “Keith, I want to go home, more than anything. I miss my family. This is the longest I’ve not had contact with them. We’d skype at least every other day and our group chat was always active. I miss them, I need them to know I’m ok. They probably think I’m dead. Even thinking about the look on my mama’s face when the Garrison knock on her door keeps me up at night, Keith, and everyone in voltron has their thing. Shiro is experienced space dad, Pidge can hack into anything, Hunk is super handy, you’re _you,_ but what am I to Voltron? What do I contribute? I think it would be best if I stepped down as Paladin and went back to earth.”

Keith stared at Lance for a moment too long, his facial expression unreadable. This angers Lance beyond belief. He thought they were gonna have a bonding moment. It’s at moments like these Lance realises how stupid his confusing feelings for Keith are. Punch him in the gut, or kiss him? Lance shook these thoughts out of his head and began to stand.

“Wow ok, Keith if you’re gonna laugh at me, just do it n-” Lance’s sentence was cut off by the air being knocked out of him as Keith pushed him back down and wrapped his arms around Lance’s waist, pulling him into a tight embrace. There was a long pause of silence before Keith finally spoke. “No, absolutely not” Lance could feel Keith gripped at his jacket slightly. His stomach tightened, and he feel the back of his neck getting warmer from the closeness.

“Lance, Voltron needs you. Who cares if you don’t have a thing? You’re well rounded. We need you to complete the mission, Lance. I understand that you miss your fam-”

Suddenly something inside of Lance snapped, a year of Iverson throwing the fact that Lance was only achieving his dream because of Keith, not because he was good enough finally got to him. “HOW COULD YOU UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH I MISS THEM. YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE A FAMILY” Lance growled, shoving Keith off him. Lance stood there, fists clenched. He glared Keith down.

 Keith looked shocked by Lance’s sudden outburst. His eyes pierced Lance’s very being. His face began to flush red with anger, and upset. He shook where he stood. There was another awkward long silence of heavy angry breathing and tears being sniffed back as they both gathered their thoughts before it was broken. Keith folded his arms closing himself off to Lance before looking at the ground as he spoke, quieter than usual.

“Lance. You’re right. I don’t have a family, on earth. I’m luckily enough to have my family here with me.” Lance’s heart clenched tight and he forgot to breathe for a moment as he realised what Keith had said to him. Keith thought of Voltron as the family he’d never had. Lance bit his lip and looked at Keith, it was very clear to Lance that he had hit a nerve. 

“Which is why I won’t let you go back to earth until this mission is complete, because we can’t finish it without the full family being here. It wouldn’t be the same without you. We’d all fall apart. You’re the glue that holds us together” Keith continued, before he kicked off the wall and started walking away with Lance. 

“I understand that you may not like me, Lance, but know I’m always here to talk if you need to” Keith was almost inaudible to Lance, but he knew what he said.

Lance grimaced thinking about what he’d just said to Keith. He never knew what it was like to grow up without a family. He probably moved from place to place. Keith has never had a good parental figure in his life until he was at least 15. Lance was so privileged to have a large family who he had constant support and shelter from. Keith never had that.  Fuck, and Lance just threw that all in his face. He didn’t mean it like that. Fuck. He needed to apologise.

“Keith I didn’t-”

“You did, Lance” Keith replied, before leaving Lance on his own once again in his once secret hiding spot.

Lance stood there for ten minutes contemplating what he’d just done. “Quiznak” he uttered, kicking himself off the ground and storming to his room. He screamed into his pillow.

He didn’t sleep a wink that night at the idea that Keith had never had a proper christmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanna say thank you to everyone to helped me out with this!! the second chapter will come soon, I promise
> 
> Shoutout to Kai for helping me with the name for this too!


	2. Guilt Ridden.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance is guilt ridden.

Lance stared up at the ceiling as his alarm went off. He sighed, as he listened to the persistent beeping before he turned it off, and threw his legs out of the bed. He threw on a shirt, and made his way down the hall. 

It had been a week, since he’d last spoken to Keith and it had been a week since he’d gotten a proper night of sleep. The black circles under his eyes were turning into craters. His hair was constantly a mess from running his hands through it and tugging at it. He couldn’t eat without instantly wanting to throw it up. 

If Lance had learnt anything from his outburst, it was that he couldn’t deal with guilt. It was eating him alive but Keith has been avoiding him like wildfire. Lance knew he deserved it, but for  _ fucks sake _ , he just wanted to apologise to him. 

Lance sat down in the dining room and smacked his head down onto the table in frustration, it would be awhile before any of the others are awake. He closed his eyes and sighed.

He wanted to be able to rest but he couldn’t stop imagining how awful Keith’s childhood could have been. If someone back at the Garrison had told him that thoughts of Keith would be keeping him awake at night, he would've probably laughed in their faces. 

But since coming to space and having to live under the same castle as him, his opinion of Keith had changed drastically.

Back at the Garrison, he thought that Keith was just the cool hot-headed asshole who had not regards for anyone but himself. He thought his scowl and attitude problem meant he didn’t care, but of course that was the opposite. he’s hot-headed because he cares so much and he doesn’t know how to express his emotions in any other way but anger as that was the only way he ever got attention while moving from house to house, foster to foster. For a moment, Lance wondered if Keith had had any affection while growing up but shuddered off the thought, pushing it to the back of his mind.

And Keith definitely wasn’t cool, he loved video games, quoting bad movies in the middle of battle. He fusses over his hair, he couldn’t focus if one hair was out of place. He had to be constantly moving, whether it was his fingers tapping or his leg shaking, he just couldn’t sit still. 

He loved conspiracy theories, Keith genuinely believed that the moon landing was faked, he’d gotten into many debates about it with Pidge over dinner. Lance is 99% sure he believes in the mothman, and other cryptids though Lance knows he would never admit to him. He’s constantly shivering and sleeps with 10 blankets, much to Lance’s amusement, who doesn’t think he’s felt cold in his whole life. Keith swears he’s a lizardman. X-files was his favourite show and Lance has caught him on more than one occasion humming the theme song while he did chores around the castle. Keith swears he must of seen every episode three times. He made Lance promise that they’d watch it all when they got back to earth. 

Lance huffed, how could he ever of thought that the Keith he knew now, the hot headed dorky awkward teenager, wasn’t prime friend material. Maybe because back at the Garrison he was so blinded with anger that he was constantly being compared to him, constantly being told that Keith was better than him, and as being the youngest of 5 other children. Lance hated comparison, but instead of hating Iversion for it, he used Keith as a scapegoat, and that wasn’t ok. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever forgive himself for it, especially now he’s began feeling affection towards him.

Often Lance has caught himself just wanting to run his hands through Keith’s hair, and wrap his arms around him from behind and hug him. He’s repeatedly been distracted by Keith’s lips, wondering how soft they are and how they’d feel against his.

Lance was in such deep thought about Keith that he hadn’t even noticed that he had been joined at the dining table. “Lance” 

The sound of his own name made him jump back and hit his head on the back of his chair. He hissed and rubbed his head before turning to the source of the noise. It was Shiro, who had clearly come to eat breakfast after doing some early morning training. His face was usually quite hard to read, but today his expression was clear. He was concerned. 

“When was the last time you slept?” Shiro asked, he folded his arms, his eyes not moving from Lance’s face. Lance knew he wasn’t getting of this conversation today as much as he wanted too. He’d avoided all of the other paladins after not being to apologise to Keith as he knew he couldn’t hide his guilt, which meant he’d have to tell them the horrible thing he’d said to Keith that night. 

“I haven’t slept a full 9 hours in a week” Lance mumbled. Shiro raised an eyebrow at this statement. “Since you and Keith stopped talking?” 

Lance sighed, running his hands through his hair. “Yes, and before you say it, I have tried to talk to him and he’s just shrugged me off. He probably hates me now because of what I said to him”  

Shiro sighed and moved closer to Lance, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Lance, he doesn’t hate you. You guys just need to talk it out to each other. We can’t have a team without communication?”  

“A bad team” Lance answered, rolling his eyes at Shiro before the corners of his mouth twitched up into a smile. 

It was in moments like this that Lance appreciated Shiro. Shiro was old enough that he had life experience. He gave good advice, almost fatherly like support but was young enough that he understood what Lance and others were going through, even if it was a bit childish for him now. 

Shiro ruffled up Lance’s hair teasingly much to Lance’s protest. He slapped away Shiro’s hand. “Anyways, please try and get some rest before training today? We need our ninja sharpshooter in top condition, yeah?” Shiro smiled at Lance before standing.  

“Anyways get some break-” Shiro was cut off by a loud crash. The castle shook so much that Shiro almost fell. Seconds later, the alarm was being sounded. 

“Paladins! We’re under attack! We need you!” Lance heard how panicked the princess was through the speakers. There hadn’t been a Galra attack for weeks, it was clear how much this had taken them by surprise. 

Lance and Shiro raced to the bridge, bursting in to find that they were the last two to arrive. Pidge, and Hunk both also clearly had just woken up and weren’t happy about it. 

Allura, luckily had been checking on the castle’s auto-pilot before the attack happened and was able to instantly put the particle barrier up to protect them from the incoming attacks. 

Lance glanced at Keith, biting his lip. The boy clearly had just gotten out of the shower, as his hair was still wet and his shirt was sticking to him like it was skin. He turned around to look at them as they entered, he looked straight through Lance but smiled wide at Shiro.  

Lance’s feelings were suddenly confused and dizzy. He could feel the guilt and heartbreak in his gut but also he could feel the top of his ears going red and his heartbeat get faster when he saw Keith. He quickly looked away, trying to focus on what Allura was telling the Paladins about that attack while Coran focused on attacking the Galra with the Castle’s defenses. 

“Right Paladins, I need you to get to your lions and fight, there isn’t a lot of them. It seems like they were doing a patrol of the area and found us, but you never know. Be careful Paladins.” As soon as Allura stopped talking, Shiro turned around and smiled at the rest of the Paladins. “Alright team, you know what to do” 

Everything happens so quickly that Lance in his uncoordinated state doesn’t even remember getting into his paladin armour or his lion. He’s just suddenly in space, fighting Galra fighters. 

Lance suddenly begun to panic. He was so tired, he couldn’t shoot straight. He could feel Blue’s concern for her paladin, as she tried to reassure him that everything is ok. It didn’t work. He couldn’t move, frozen from fear. He had no idea what he was doing. He’d forgotten all of his training. 

“Lance?? Lance do you hear me? You’re under heavy fire, you need to move now!” Shiro called after shooting down one of the fighters that were attacking Lance.

Lance didn’t reply, he just stared with widen eyes at the fighting. Suddenly the only thing that Lance could see with a flash of purple. Blue cried out as she was hit by the Galra Battleship’s cannon before she went limp, spinning through space. “LANCE!” The scream was the last thing he heard before he blacked out. 

Lance opened his eyes and stared up at the glow in the dark stars. He smelt the bread and heard the laughter of his nieces and nephews outside his room. He sat up, confused. Had Voltron just been a dream? He sat up in his bed, looking around the room. Everything was the same as when he left. He smiled at the picture of himself, Hunk and Pidge in sweaters that his Mama had made them all at Christmas. He swung his legs out the bed and felt something soft under foot. He looked down and saw the curled up dog, who he’d just woken. “Hey boy!” He yelped excitedly, he hadn’t seen him in so long. Bailey yawned, wagging his tail at Lance. 

After petting his dog for a good 10 minutes, Lance decided to get dressed and brave it downstairs. 

“Lance!” Instantly the teen was attacked by an army of small humans. It wasn’t often that his nieces and nephews were this excitable in the morning, what was happening? He smiled down at all of them, ruffling their hair and picking them up one by one to give them a kiss on the forehead. “Good morning! What’s got you guys up and running around so early?” He asked as he knelt down in front of them. 

There were six of them. Four girls and two boys. He loved all of them so much, he’d do anything to protect all of them from the dangers that the world had to offer. 

“Grandma said we can go to the beach today” They all chimed in at once. Before Lance could say anything, he heard a voice that sent warm to his heart and tears to his eyes. “That I did, what do you think about your favourite uncle coming with us as well?” His Mama grinned at the children before they all cheered in agreement. 

“But before we do that, there is something that he has to do” Lance’s face twisted with confusion. 

“And what is that, mama?” He questioned, looking up at her with multiple children climbing all over him. They stopped moving suddenly and all looked up at him in sync. “Ok, little creepy gu-” He was cut off by his mother’s calm but cutting words.

“You need to move, Lance” She said sternly. “The team need you. I- I need you” She continued but slowly her voice changed into Keith’s. When suddenly her’s and the children’s faces begun to melt with the rest of his surroundings. Lance trying desperately to hold onto his family. Tears streamed down his face. “We need you to form Voltron” A voice boomed, as he stared with horror as his family, and his home turned to ash and dust in front of him. He looked down at his hands, weeping for his loss. There was nothing he could do, he couldn’t save them.

Suddenly he was standing, staring up at Voltron while everything burned around him. “I’m awake! P-Please don’t hurt me family” He stuttered out, as he watched Voltron form his sword.

Before Lance had a chance to figure out what was going on, Voltron lunged towards him. Lance closed his eyes and accepted his fate. Everything went white and all he heard was ringing. “LANCE!!” The cry pierced through the ringing and his eyes shot open. He was back in his lion, about to take another hit from its cannon. 

Lance moved quickly into action, manoeuvering blue out of the way out purple beam. “Nice to see you’ve finally joined the party.” Keith growled down the comms at Lance. 

Lance winced. “Sorry I-” He got cut off before he could even explain himself.

“There’s no time we need to form Voltron! We can talk about what went wrong after we’ve dealt with the problem” Shiro commanded. 

As soon as Voltron was formed, the battle was won. They use the sword to cut through the hull of the Galra Battleship, causing it to explode, or that’s how Lance thinks they won. He dissociated for most of the end of the battle. When the others cheered at their victory, he stayed silent. 

Blue took him back to the castle. Lance could feel the concern that the lion had felt for her paladin. He tried to calm her as much as he could but she knew that something was wrong. 

Lance took his time leaving his lion, hoping that he wouldn’t catch one of  the other paladins in the process. He didn’t want to explain what had happened, he wanted to go to his room and cry about what he’d seen. 

But as soon as he’d stepped out of his hanger and into the main castle, he was slammed into the wall and pinned there. “What the  _ hell  _ were you doing out there? You could of got yourself killed!” Keith shouted, his glare laced with worry. Lance tried to shove him off, but his grip tightened on him. “Do you want die? Is that it? You’ve given up on us, on your team?” Keith punched the wall next to Lance’s head.

“Wha- No!” Lance cried. “I just, I haven’t slept, in a week and I just  _ froze.  _ Like I couldn’t  _ do  _ ANYTHING, and then I got hit with the cannon and I saw them, and they-” He winced at the memory, tears forming in his eyes. He was surprised that he still had any fluid left in him for tears. “What do you mean you haven’t slept? A-are you crying?” Keith’s tone shifted, and his gripped loosened before he pulled Lance to the ground and into a gentle hug. Lance accepted this and holding onto him tightly, crying into his shoulder. 

“I haven’t slept because I have felt so guilty, because of what I said to you” Lance sobbed. Keith remanded silent. “Like I shouldn’t of thrown your kindness back in your face, and-” 

Keith cut Lance off. “Lance I’m not upset that you said that to me, telling me that I don’t have a family is like me telling you that you’re eyes are blue.” 

Lance looked at Keith, with confusion. “But surely that upsets you? That you’re-” 

“Lance, stop. It doesn’t upset me, anything that I needed, I got for  _ myself.  _ I didn’t need anyone else.” Keith tensed up around him before pulling out of the hug that Lance craved so badly.  Lance looked up at the boy who was now scowling again. His stomach dropped, he’d said something wrong again. “Keit-” 

“No Lance, I was upset at you because you seem to think I don’t care that we’re in space. I’m fucking  _ terrified _ . I miss my shack, I miss my bike, and I miss the rain” Keith clenched his fists. “But I’m not about to go back to Earth until I’m sure I’ve saved it from Zarkon, until I’ve  _ saved  _ the clear blue skies, all the cute dogs, the ice cream and you.” 

Lance felt his face instantly flush a deep crimson. “And me?” he stuttered out, looking up at Keith who looked as equally surprised at what he’d just said.

“N-not like you need saving, but you know, watching you get hit out there today. I thought you were as good as dead.” Keith muttered, before pulling Lance into a tight hug again. “Please rest. Don’t do that again. Promise me?” Lance’s stomach did a flip as soon as he heard what Keith had said to him. Keith actually cared about him, he didn’t hate him? Lance gulped. “I promise” 

Keith squeezed Lance tightly before pulling back away from him, giving him a small smile which made Lance’s heart skip a couple of beats. “Good, we cool now?” Lance almost laughed as he never thought he’d hear Keith ask  _ him  _ if they were cool. 

“Yeah we’re cool” Lance replied, flashing him a smile before they both stood up and began walking towards the dining room. 

“Lance! Are you ok? Do you need any medical attention?” Coran asked as soon as they arrived, he lifted Lance’s arms making sure they were still attached to his body and then counted all of his fingers. “Um- Coran, I’m fine, just need food” Lance replied, swatting the Altean’s surprise medical exam away. 

Lance looked towards the dining table and saw everyone sat that, staring at him with concerned about what happened to day on the battlefield. He sat down next to Hunk, who shot him a reassuring smile. “Hey Lance, what happened we uh really thought that” Pidge started but Lance cut them off. “I’m sorry, I was- I am exhausted and I just froze up, I’m sorry it won’t happen again” He stutters out, looking down at the table.

“Lance it’s ok, it happens to the best of people” Shiro chimed in, “We never know when the Galra are gonna attack and well, none of us were ready. We need to get better at being ready, we never know when Zarkon is going to attack” The paladins nodded. “Ok Team, let’s eat and then get some rest. We have a big training day tomorrow” Shiro grinned as the other paladins groaned. “What? Do you want to save the universe or not?” He winked because tucking into his food goo. 

The rest of dinner went by without a hitch. The paladins made jokes, told stories about earth, let Coran tell stories about King Alfor, it was very clear that he admired the man greatly. Soon enough though Lance decided that he needed to catch up on the sleep that he had lost. He hummed a goodnight to his friends before, heading to his room. 

He pulled off his armor and under-armor before heading into the shower to wash off the after battle anxiety and smell. Lance closed his eyes and let the scolding hot water beat down on his back, he bit his lip as he begun to scrub at his skin, trying to get the feel of his family’s ashes off his skin. He felt the tears coming again as he put his head on the wall of the shower and stared down at the plug hole. “Fuck” He cursed to himself, before stopping the shower and throwing on his pyjamas. 

He crashed into his bed, before turning over and staring up at the ceiling. Lance sighed, and closed his eyes. He fell asleep for what felt like a moment before he saw the melting faces again and screamed. “NO!’

Lance sat up in his bed. His pyjamas sticking up to him due to sweat, he panted, trying to calm himself down but he couldn’t. He stood up, deciding to take his pride and put it in a blender as he opened his door and dragged his way down to Keith’s room. He knocked on the door and waited for a moment before Keith answered.

He’d clearly woken him up as he was only wearing boxer shorts and a black t-shirt, freckles dotted all over the shorter teen’s body, including his legs. Lance had never met anyone with more freckles than Keith. His hair was a mess, he’d obviously slept on it while it was wet, which usually would make Lance laugh but not today. He gulped. Keith was even cuter when he was tired. 

“Hey you ok buddy?” He asked with a hoarse voice, while rubbing the sleep out of one of his eyes. 

“N-no I keep having nightmares about…” His voice trailed off, and he went to fold his arms, but Keith grabbed one of his wrists and pulled him gently into his room. “Woaah Kei-?” Lance went to protest as Keith began dragging him towards the bed. 

Keith stared at him for a moment slightly flushed. “Just get in, Lance” He stuttered out before he climbed into his bed and patted the empty space next to him. 

Lance flushed a deep red, before giving up on protesting, climbing into the bed. He turned over and faced away from Keith. “Thanks” He mumbled, before he bit his lip. 

“Don’t worry about it” Keith replied, unmoving. 

Lance chewed at his lip, trying to hold back the tears. He felt pathetic, he couldn’t even sleep without needing someone else’s help. He must of been the worst paladin that there had ever been. He let out one sniffle when suddenly there were strong arms wrapped around him and pulling him into a tight hug. 

“Lance it’s ok, everyone needs help sometimes” Keith muttered against his back, rubbing it with circular motions. This made Lance begin to sob. He was sick of being strong constantly, he was sick of saving the universe. He just wanted to be a teenager. He didn’t want to be remembered by the universe as one of its greatest warriors. He wanted his mama.

Keith turned Lance over so he was facing him and wiped his tears before pulling him back into a hug yet again. He held him until he was sure Lance was calm again. He stroked his hair and down his back. “Lance we will make it back to earth, I promise you” He whispered into Lance’s ear which made him shiver. “Pinky promise?”

Keith rolled his eyes. “Pinky promise” 

Lance gave him a half-hearted smile before he moved away from Keith although he’d like nothing more to fall asleep in his arms. He thought that he saw some hurt as he did in Keith’s eyes before he pushed that to the back of his head. He needed to stop projecting his feelings onto him. “Thanks Keith” He mumbled before he turned over again. 

“What are friends for?” Keith replied and Lance let out a small half laugh, but it hurt his heart to hear Keith say that. He knew nothing would ever happen with him but god he wanted to be so much more.

“Yeah….friends” he uttered almost unaudibly before falling asleep. 

He didn’t wake up once while he could feel Keith by his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HI THANK YOU FOR READING THIS, I LOVE YOU ALL.


	3. Sirona 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Today our mission is just a diplomatic one on Sirona 5. You’ll be talking to the locals and helping them out with any small tasks. Being a Paladin of Voltron isn’t all big fights you know!!”

Keith woke up first. He blushed lightly when he saw that he and Lance had decided in the night that the best course of action was to cuddle. Lance was laying on top of Keith’s arm, while he used Keith’s chest as a pillow. He’d never seen so up close to Lance’s face before. He had really long eyelashes, and really clear skin. He looked like he’d never had a single spot. Keith bit back the jealousy for a moment, smiling down at Lance who was nuzzled into his side. He was clearly in a deep sleep without a care in the world. Who knew Lance’s face could look so soft without a extremely over the top animated expression on it? Although Keith can’t lie, he loved Lance’s cocky smile, his laugh and his eyes.  _ Oh my god, his eyes.  _ They were a light but swirled with a deep blue and Keith could never pinpoint what they reminded him of? The ocean? No that was too cliché. He would love nothing more than to be able to stare into them for hours figuring out everything to do with Lance’s eyes, but alas Keith knew that couldn’t happen. 

Lance was straight for one, the first thing he does wherever they go is flirt with alien  _ girls,  _ not guys. Anyways he wasn't even sure where these sudden feelings of affection came from for the taller teen. 

At the beginning of their adventure through space, Lance had made Keith want to rip his hair out whenever he begun talking, but with time he’d grown quite fond of Lance. Keith loved winding him up and watching him go, he’d figured that out while at the Garrison. He’d do little things just to piss off the loud obnoxious cargo pilot in his class all because of the way he’d react. He’d lied when he had said to Lance that he hadn’t remembered him, as how could he forget someone as animated and dramatic as him.

As much as he didn’t want to make light of the serious situation he’d found himself in that with the other paladins, he could never let an opportunity to push his buttons go, especially as Lance could never let go of this rivality idea. Back at the Garrison, Keith would've scoffed at the idea that he and lance were ever neck and neck. He beat Lance at everything, well when it came to flying. The only thing that Lance was better at was making friends. Keith had been jealous at the large group of friends that he had had. There was no doubt about it, Lance had been popular at the Garrison, he had personality for days, buckets full of charm and charisma. 

Keith wasn't good with people, everything he said always came out too harsh or too intense. He'd never kept a friend for very long. He often came off as defensive as when he was younger and moving around a lot, he got bullied. Mostly for the way he looked, his hair and freckles being the main target. He had one set of foster parents that called him horrible homophobic names, and forced him to get his hair cut short. That’s why he keeps it long now, only Shiro knows that though. Shiro was the only friend that he’d been able to keep for more than 5 months, he was like a brother to him, and was the first person that keith had ever cared about. Shiro was the person he looked up, he made him want to better himself and he never wanted to disappoint Shiro. He was the friend he had craved so desperately. When the opportunity for the kerberos mission came along, Keith told Shiro to jump on it. He didn’t want to hold him back to earth. 

Anyways he’d had been alone most of his life, and was able to provide for himself no matter what. He didn’t need other people to survive, and he was proud of himself for that. He hated it when people pitied him for not having a family, like so what? It meant that he was harden, aware of how the world works. 

But when the Garrison announced that the Kerberos mission was lost, due to  _ pilot error.  _ He’d lost it, Shiro was the best pilot, the best mentor,  _ brother,  _ he’d known and there was no way that he would of been the cause of the mission failing. Of course his persistent into the matter eventually got him kick out of the Garrison.

A suddenly small snore from Lance made Keith lose his train of thought, his hair was a complete curly mess onto top of his head and he loved it, it had been dead straight at the Garrison but as soon as it began getting some length it began getting this curl that made Keith’s heart skip a beat. Lance had yet to try and cut it although Keith was sure he would as soon as it got too long for his liking. 

He smiled down at Lance, who had moved slightly, pushing himself up against Keith more, which made him go bright red. He wasn’t used to this amount of affection from well, anyone. So getting it from  _ Lance,  _ had made his heart skip beats and his chest was on fire. He’d had dreams that this would happen, and yet now that it is happening, he is frozen. Fear that he is gonna wake him up and then he will leave, leaving Keith alone. 

He gently moved his hand, and let out a tiny gasp when he touched the skin on Lance’s lower back. His shirt had lifted slightly in the night. His skin was so soft, Keith just wanted to drag his nails across- No. He forced himself to push those thoughts to the back of his head. He can’t have those thoughts about a team member, a friend, a  _ guy.  _ He bit his lip and moved his hand up to Lance’s head, and ran his hand through it gently. He bit his lip, how did he keep his hair so nice in  _ space. _

Keith sighed and moved his gaze up to the ceiling. He couldn’t have these feelings for Lance. He wasn’t good for the boy, he’d get jealous, protective, and distract him from missions. He couldn’t do that, the missions were too important. He could wait until they were finished but then they’d go back to earth and Lance would go back to the Garrison, or back home with his family, and friends. People would deserved Lance’s attention way more than Keith. 

He stared up at the ceiling until he felt Lance begin to stir, and closed his eyes quickly. He didn’t want Lance to ask him how long he’d been awake for as he didn’t want to freak him out. He felt like lift his head and realised he’d been using Keith has a pillow. He let out a gasp. He could feel his sleepy eyes gazing on him, he desperately tried to keep his blush under control as he felt lance’s hair run through his messy hair. He heard a soft sigh before he put his head back into Keith’s chest. 

Suddenly he felt his skin touch Lance’s again, as he’d lifted his shirt slightly and was touching just above his hip. He bit the inside of his cheek. He felt Lance’s hand slowly trace over his skin, he couldn’t take it. He could the back of his neck getting warm, and the thoughts breaking through the barrier. He wanted to pounce on him and kiss him so badly. 

Keith slowly opened his eyes and pretended to just wake up, he looked down at what Lance was doing finally. He was counting his freckles. Keith blushed a deep red, when Lance looked up at him with widen eyes as he realised he’d been caught. “I uh- I just um” Lance stuttered out, before looking away from Keith. 

“You were counting them?” He replied to his stuttering more calm than he thought he would. 

Lance calms when he realises that Keith isn’t mad at him. “Why do you like my freckles so much?” Keith asks looking away from Lance as he sat himself up slightly using his elbows as support. 

Lance smiled “I’ve always wanted freckles, I get jealous whenever I see someone with them, and you just have so many. I always wondered if you had them on your stomach” He mumbled, hugging his knees. Keith’s eyes widen, before he looked away from Lance. “I hate them, so much. If I could give them to you I would” He muttered out.

“What! Why!! They’re so awesome!” Lance protested so violently, that Keith to quickly turn his gaze back to him. “They’re dumb, they’re like having lots of little permanent spots” Lance shook his head violently before standing up, looking around for something quickly before grabbing it when he found it and hurrying back to Keith’s side. “I’m gonna prove that they’re awesome to you”

“What are you-” Keith protested as Lance swiftly lifted his shirt up again, drew lines between his freckles quickly. “Where did you get the pen from?” He wondered out loud, waiting until Lance was done before looking down at his hip. It was a star constellation, well two actually. He knew the first one was his star sign, Virgo. “What’s the second one?” He asked looking at Lance, who was proud of his work. “Um it’s my star sign, Leo”  He replied calmly, although it made Keith think his heart was going to come out of his chest. 

“Don’t think of them as spots, think of them as stars dotted across your body. It’s like you were destined to be in Space” Lance mumbled, staring at his work for a moment before standing up and stretching. Keith watched him with widen eyes, completely shocked by the words that had just fallen out of Lance’s mouth.

Keith never thought he was destined for anything. Especially not space.

Lance turned and smiled at the shocked boy, who he’d left laying there. “Thanks for letting me stay with you last night, I really needed it. I’m gonna get ready for the mission today, I would suggest you do the same too, Keithy boy” He said before he left the room. He watched him leave before Keith turned over and flopped his head down into his pillow before screaming in frustration. Lance had him wrapped around his finger and he didn’t even know, and oh that boy was gonna kill him.

Once Keith was showered, he was very careful not to wash off Lance’s artwork just above his hip. He got into his paladin armour and went straight to the bridge. Lance wasn’t there yet, probably still doing his skin care routine, but the rest of the team were. 

Allura smiled at Keith as he entered, which warmed the teen’s heart. Ever since they'd found out that he had Galra blood in him, he'd felt like he was walking on eggshells. He understood why, but even after Allura had reassured him and apologised to him. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was going to get throw from the castle at any moment.

He’d talked to Shiro about it, who had reassured him that he wasn’t going to just get booted from the castle one day but it still kept him up at night. What if he suddenly turned Galra in appearance too? Keith often had nightmares about it. His skin slowly turning purple, his teeth falling out and being replaced with long fangs. His bones cracking and breaking, moulding him into one of them. He’d always look up and see the other paladins, staring at him with horror. Lance would always raise his gun, aiming at Keith. That was the point he woke up, in a cold sweat. Always. 

He was pulled from his thoughts when Hunk put a hand on his shoulder. “Hey Keith, you alright dude? You look like you’ve seen a ghost!” He asked, giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. Keith shrugged him off. “Yeah I’m fine” He didn’t want to get into his feelings for Lance with his best friend. 

Did he even have feelings for Lance? He was loud, obnoxious, an annoyance, funny, friendly, he UGH. Keith couldn’t make sense of his brain anymore, it was as if one half of his brain hated Lance and the other didn’t want to ever let him go. 

Space had clearly gotten to him. He sat down and tapped his foot on the floor as he tried to make sense of his head, he was so deep in thought that he didn’t notice the cause of this frustration enter the room, and sit down behind him. “Right, Paladins!” Coran chirped which made Keith jumped out of his deep thought. Lance tried not to laugh, but Keith could hear him. “Today our mission is just a diplomatic one on Sirona 5. You’ll be talking to the locals and helping them out with any small tasks. Being a Paladin of Voltron isn’t all big fights you know!!” He cooed before turning back to piloting the castle. 

“The people that live on Sirona 5 have invited us to form an alliance, getting this alliance will really help us in the fight against Zarkon and the Galra” Shiro chimed in before the other paladins could groan at the idea of doing small tasks. “Exactly right, Shiro” Allura agreed with Shiro, smiling at him gently. 

“Paladins, I know this mission seems… pointless but don’t see it as that see it as a well deserved break. We’re going to be here for at least a Quintant.” Allura smiled apologetically at the Paladins. 

“We will be working in teams of two, Shiro and I will be dealing with their leader, Pidge and Hunk you will help them get better communications and weapons, Keith and Lance, you will help the locals with their daily tasks” Keith groaned internally, the idea of having to do small tasks with groups of people he didn’t know made him want to vomit. He just hates talking to people, Allura and Shiro know this why would they put him on a task where he has too, but then again the tasks should be easy enough once the locals tell them what to do, so maybe it wasn’t too bad. He and Lance could do the tasks and then relax that didn’t sound that bad. 

“Awh yeah, cute alien girls and I get to be Keith’s wingman” keith’s stomach suddenly dropped, and he could feel his temperature raising.  _ Shit,  _ he didn’t want to have to deal with the tinge of jealousy he could feel growing inside of him already. 

He growled and turned to Lance. “Or maybe we could  _ focus _ on the task at hand” He snapped at Lance, glaring in his direction. Even if he wanted a partner, he didn’t need Lance as a wingman to get one. Although Lance as a boyfri-. “What? Pretty boy don’t want a cute alien girlfriend?” Lance hummed, smirking in Keith’s direction. Why was he trying to wind him up today? He was the only one who would have to deal with what the other paladins called “grumpy Keith”. No one wanted to hang out with Keith when he was grumpy, not even him. Although Keith found himself getting more flustered than angry today, as Lance had called him  _ pretty boy.  _ Lance called him  _ pretty.  _ He thinks he’s pretty. He was left speechless, flushed and staring at Lance. He smirked as if he had hoped for that reaction. 

Keith growled in frustration, shoving past Lance and towards the way to his lion. “I’m gonna go see red before the mission” He hissed out to him as he did. He didn’t want him in his head before this mission. He needed to focus, he needed to focus on something that wasn’t Lance. 

He could feel Red trying to send him calming vibes through the castle as he made his way down to her. As soon as he was in her hanger she was purring. He stepped inside and sat down, smiling as the calming aura washed over him. Red was always warm, and Keith loved it. The castle was often freezing, meant he spent most of his time shivering. He’d raided the place for every spare blanket and even then, he was still cold at most nights. Whenever he got too frustrated with this, he would slink down to Red, and sleep inside of her, all toasty and warm. 

Sometimes when he really couldn’t sleep, she’d project an image around Keith so it looked like he was under the stars. He never thought he would have such a close bond with something that he pilots, but he’s glad that he does. He tells Red everything, and even if she doesn’t reply, he knows she’s listening to him.  The first time he ever slept in Red, he hadn’t been able to sleep for a number of days and was exhausted. He’d heard her calling to him and went down to see what was wrong. Keith was asleep almost as soon as he’d sat down inside her, she was just so toasty and  _ purring.  _ Red’s cockpit felt like home. 

He slept for 16 hours, while the other paladins ran around in a panic looking for him. They soon realised that he couldn’t of left the ship, and calmed. Eventually Lance found him curled up with a blanket inside of his lion. Now Red is the first place they check if they can’t find him. 

He closed his eyes, and suddenly he and Red were running through space together. He was touching the stars, and racing his lion. She pounced on him and he laughed. Her fur was always so soft in here, although he couldn’t stay for very long because the mission. Sometimes he’d stay for hours with Red like this. Just him and his lion. Keith waited until he was completely calm and then waited just a little bit more before leaving. He didn’t want Lance to have to come and find him.

As soon as he stepped out of Red, he could feel the castle landing on the planet Sirona 5. Keith wanted nothing more than to step back inside of Red and stay there but he knew he couldn’t do that. Shiro and Allura were counting on him, so were the other paladins, so he’d spend the day with Lance. What could be so bad about that? 

He found the other paladins in the great hall, waiting for Keith so they could leave. He sighed, as much as this mission is a break from big battles and Voltron smashing adventures. He knew it was going to be painstakingly boring.

As soon as they stepped out of the castle, the first thing Keith noticed about the Sironian people is that they are very similar to humans. Although they had pointed ears, and were shorter in stature. They looked what he thought pixies looked like. If he had a camera on him he would of taken a picture of one of them and then when he got back to Earth. He could sell it as proof that they were real. He sighed at the thought of how much money he could make from that. 

The leader of the Sironian’s greeted them, shaking hands with all of them. Keith tried not to laugh as Shiro tried to subtly bend down to shake his hand easier. “Hello Paladins of Voltron, I am Emon, I am king of the Sironian people. Please let me show you around my city, Ikita ” He announced to the Paladins. 

Allura smiled and stepped forward. “Thank you King Emon, I’m Princess Allura of Altea. Thank you for contacting us about joining the fight against Zarkon and the Galra” Keith loved watching Allura go from her normal mode to her diplomatic princess mode. It amazes Keith that she is able to deal with people like King Emon, even if he hadn’t done anything particularly horrible. Keith just had a problem with authority. 

He always had, even back at the Garrison before he started questioning about what had happened on Kerboros mission, he was constantly getting in trouble and Shiro would always have to bail him out. Keith was honestly surprised that the Garrison didn’t kick him out as soon as Shiro went into space.

As they walked with King Emon, who was having a deep conversation with Allura and Shiro. They soon split off with Pidge and Hunk as they found the scientists & engineers that they were going to be helping for the next day. Keith saw Pidge’s face light up at the idea of working with people shorter than them. It warmed his heart.

He and Lance tagged along with Allura and Shiro until they stood in front of a group of the Sironian people. They smiled up at the two boys, while holding paint brushes?  It was at this moment King Emon addressed the two paladins who he had been ignoring. 

“We’ve been building some new houses and we could really use an extra hand or two with the painting if that’s ok, Paladins?” He smirked, and winked playfully at them. He knew that they couldn’t reject the offer. Keith tried not to glare at the King, not wanting to cause a scene for Shiro and Allura. “Yeah we can do that, can’t we Keith?” Lance chimed in. He had that look in this eye like he’d just seen a cute dog and really wanted to pet it. He sighed and smiled down at the Sironians. “Yes, we can”

The Sironians smiled and nodded, as they began to lead Lance and Keith away from Shiro and Allura. “Don’t get paint on your armour!” Allura called after them, and Lance waved her off. “Don’t worry we won’t!” 

The city of Ikita reminded Keith of the postcards you get in truck shops of beaches on Earth. He looked at Lance, who was grinning from ear to ear. He clearly loved the city, looking at all the market stalls and tiny houses. Keith hadn’t seen him this happy in a long time. He wondered if it reminded him of his home on Earth.

When they got to the houses that they were helping paint, it didn’t take them long to really get into the swing of things. The Sironians were really nice, although they had a wild side. One accidentally flick of paint on one of their heads and suddenly Keith and Lance were team captains in a full out paint war.

They had to use military tactics to sneak around the house. As soon as someone got splatted with paint they were “dead”. It was soon down to just Keith and Lance, one on one. Neck and neck.  _ Rivals.  _ Keith smirked to himself at the thought as he was hidden a the top room of this house, he could hear Lance looking for him, sneaking was never Lance’s strong point. As quickly as his lion, Keith jumped out from his hiding spot with his shield up, aiming his paint brush straight at Lance. His flick was strong and precise. He smirked as he got lance straight down the middle of his helmet. Headshot. 

Lance gasped dramatically and suddenly collapsed to the ground. “Keith… Buddy...My Man” He choked out,  Keith rolled his eyes as he knelt down next to him. He grabbed his head and looked Keith straight in the eyes. He could feel himself heating up at his touch. The intense look in Lance’s eye that haunts him. “Before I die, I want you to know… I’ve always hated your hair” Moment ruined. Keith dropped Lance on the floor instantly. 

“Stay dead” He huffed while Lance rolled around the floor, completely covering himself in paint. 

Keith remembered what Allura had said to them and looked down at Lance, holding back a wicked laugh. “You know Allura is gonna kill you” He folded his arms, and smirked as he suddenly stopped laughing, realising he’d made a great mistake. 

“Shit” He cursed as he stood up, looking at how much paint was actually on him and his armour. “She’s gonna kill us-” Lance looked at Keith and frowned. “You’ve not got any paint on you” Shit. He saw that flash in Lance’s eye. He started backing away. “I don’t know what you mean, I’m covered in paint” Lance started creeping towards him. “No you’re not.” Lance grinned. “Hey Keith? Remember that bonding moment? You cradling me in your arms? How about we recreate that right now?” He pounced forward as Keith dodged out of his way. “Or…. how about we don’t” Keith replied, as he bolted from the house, waving to the Sironians as he did. He had Lance hot on his tail.

“Keith! Buddy! Come here and give Lancey Lance a hug!” He heard Lance roar after him. 

They didn’t stop running until suddenly Keith heard it, he knew that sound anywhere. The crashing of waves, he picked up the pace as he began to smell the water. He stopped at the edge of the beach, and turned to see Lance would had stopped focusing on covering Keith in paint and was now rushing to take off his boots. 

Lance rushed onto the beach, with bare feet. He screamed happily as the planet’s water hit his feet. “Keith!! It’s a beach” He roared again as he jumped into the ocean, luckily which was also washing the paint away from his armour. Keith was hesitant for a moment, he didn’t know what was in the war here on Sirona 5 and didn’t want them to get eaten, but he saw Lance’s grin and he know he had to join him. He rushed to take his boots off and as soon as he bare foot touched the ground, he felt the familiar feel of sea. He ran towards Lance fill speed and pushed him into the water with a splash. 

“Oh it’s on now” Keith thought he heard Lance say as they began to splash each other with the water, when suddenly Lance gasped. “KEITH HELP ME MAKE A SAND CASTLE” He rushed towards the beach with excitement. Keith smiled as he watched him run. Oh he was smitten for this boy. “Ok, coming!” He called back after him, as he looked down at his feet in the clear blue water. 

He felt like he was back on Earth. He could pretend there was no Voltron, there was no evil emperor coming to destroy them all and take over the universe. It was just him and Lance, enjoying a day at the beach.  _ A dat-.  _ Keith quickly shook his head out that mindset, and walked towards Lance, who had already starting building the foundations for the sand castle. 

Lance took sand castle building very serious. He kept a close eye on Keith making sure that he didn’t mess any of his work up before he decided that Keith was just not good enough at building sand castles to help him, much to Keith’s amusement. 

He sat and watched Lance work, before looking out across the beach that they’d discovered again. Sirona 5 was a beautiful planet, and it definitely reminded him on Earth a little too much, It made Keith heart twinge at the idea that they’d have to leave tomorrow. 

It was peaceful for a moment before he heard it. He knew that sound well, he looked at Lance who was looking at him with Widen eyes. His mouth slowly forming a big grin. “Was that?” 

“Yes it was” 

“Do you think it’s gonn-” 

The large drop of water that fell from the sky and landed on Lance’s nose answered the question for him. Rain. It started slowly, before turning fast and hard. On a normal day on Earth, Keith would of ran inside for shelter, cursing the rain for ruining his hair, but it wasn’t a normal day, and they weren’t on earth. 

They jumped up, and ran around the beach, laughing and dancing in the rain. Their grins were wide, the happiest they’d been all day and they thought this was going to be a bad mission. Lance grabbed Keith’s hand and spun him, before he started dancing with  _ him.  _ He was going to protest, but Keith couldn’t resist. They danced for as long as they could before Lance looked him in the eyes, and pulled him closer, slowing the dance down. “Keith, I don’t think I could've chosen anyone else to do this with” He stuttered out, suddenly very shy. Keith was confused, what did he mean by that. “Are you sure not a cute alien girl?” Keith laughed but stopped when he saw Lance’s serious expression. “Not a single cute alien girl could ever beat you, Keith” He replied, as he bit his lip and pulled him closer. The sound of the rain hummed in the background but all Keith could focus on was Lance. 

There was a long pause, before suddenly Keith found the space in between him and Lance was being closed. He felt Lance’s lips on his as he heard a crack of thunder. The kiss was shy at first but turned hungry very quickly, as if they’d both been wanting this for a long time. He gripped at Lance’s armour, keeping him close. He felt Lance’s hands through his hair as he deepened the kiss. All Keith could think about was Lance, Lance,  _ Lance.  _

Never in his wildest dreams did he think that he would be kissing him in the rain, it was all a bit too much. Keith pulled away, Lance looked shocked and hurt. “Lance, we can’t-” Keith panicked, trying desperately not to move back and hold Lance in his arms. 

“Why can’t we?!” Lance replied angrily, moving closer to Keith again. He stepped back. “The mission is too important, we’d be a weakness to Volt-” 

“Enough about Voltron! We’re not Voltron, we’re people! We have lives other than Voltron!” Lance cut in, he was very upset. “Please Keith-” 

He was cut off by the sound of an engine. They turned around to see the gigantic Galra ship entering the atmosphere for the planet. “Lance, we’ve gotta get back to the castle, but I  _ promise  _ we can talk about this later, ok?” Keith grabbed Lance’s hand, pulling him down the beach towards the City again. Lance sighed, looking like a hurt puppy before they ran off back to the castle. 

 

While they ran through the city, the rain pelting down on them. Keith looked over at Lance, who was focused solely on getting to back to the castle. His determination to save this planet made him realised what Lance’s eyes reminded him of. It wasn’t the ocean, no of course not. 

It was a  _ storm.  _

**Author's Note:**

> NEXT CHAPTER SOON I PROMISE
> 
> THANK YOU FOR READING THIS


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